Verlat Charles

Charles (Karel) Verlat was a Belgian painter and engraver. He was born (1824) and died (1890) in Antwerp. He was educated at the Academy in Antwerp under the direction of G. Wappers and N. De Keyser, he was also a student of E. Hamman and J. Lies. He stayed in Paris from 1850 to 1868 and took lessons there under the guidance of A. Scheffer, H. Flandrin and Th. Couture and came into contact with G. Courbet. He was teacher and director at the Kunstschule in Weimar from 1869 to 1874. He traveled to Egypt, Syria and Palestine between 1875 and 1877 and exhibited the works created during this trip in 1877 in a specially built hall in Antwerp. After his return from the Near East, he played an eminent role in Antwerp's art scene. He has realized historical compositions, genre scenes, portraits and animals. As a follower of realism à la Courbet, he developed into a proponent of naturalism in art. The genre painting was raised to monumental dimensions. In this regard, one should look at his grandiose panoramas such as The Battle of Waterloo (1881) and the Panorama of Moscow. As a satirist he painted, watercolored and etched, among other things, depictions of animals behaving like people. He initially took a progressive stance and gradually evolved towards a traditionalist view, which was highly resented by the newcomers. In 1877 he became an honorary member of the Société Royale Belge des Aquarellistes, in 1877 a teacher and in 1885 director of the Academy in Antwerp. His class included R. Baseleer, L. Brunin, E. Chappel, L. and P. Van Engelen, E. Larock, H. Luyten, Ch. Mertens, J. Rosier, H. Van De Velde, Ch. Tree. He is mentioned in the Biography Nationale of the Royal Academy of Belgium, volume XXXII. He is also mentioned in BAS I and Two Centuries of Signatures of Belgian Artists. (piron)